Maybe we should have this whole Realistic vs Reduced discussion in a separate thread, rather than restrict it to only this one, where it may get lost.
However a couple of initial thoughts of mine.
1. This was the first test run using Realistic Damage, and maybe a Monte Carlo Rally was too tough for the first test. This was a very tricky one, with slippery surfaces, so easy to bump things. But I wanted to see if that would identify differences more quickly.
Before we pass final judgements, I thinik we need to try a couple more using Gravel and (maybe) Snow.
2. Re the suggestion that drivers have to slow down too much to avoid crashing, and making it unfair for some. That probably is realistic, most real drivers have to do that. Maybe we are allowing people to develop bad habits??? What is considered driving fast vs slow is subjective. You should be driving as fast as you can to suit the conditions but keep the car alive. Daruisz says it favours the hard core guys, I think it favours the drivers who respect the car / conditions. It is also frustrating for some of us to see some "fast" guys bouncing off walls, banks, etc, rolling the car, and still being winners or podium finishers. For example, I have always driven as if I own the car, and therefore have always tried to keep it clean, even when we have used Reduced. This was my first rally in Realistic, I didn't drive any differently, didn't hit anything, and I think my Stage times were very similar to normal. I'm certainly not an "alien", but I do try to drive cleanly and consistently.
I'm sure there are others here who drive similarly and can handle Realistic ok.
3. Maybe we need to stop people developing bad driving habits, and encourage them to drive more cleanly, rather than thinking that bouncing off walls etc is good driving?
4. Having said the above, I'm sure that it may be less FUN for some. It certainly raises the learning curve for new comers. RBR is tough enough to start with, Realistic Damage may make that curve too steep, and deter new members, even existing ones.
I have no plans to introduce Realistic Damage for ALL future events. However, it is an option that maybe we can use occasionally, for variety, especially if it mixes up the results a little more and gives the "clean" drivers more of a chance.
It is certainly being considered by the RDRC Team for possible future Championships, so we need to give it a good testing to see how much of an affect it may have.
This was the first time for many of us using Realistic Damage (including me), so perhaps we need to keep an open mind at this point of time, and lets see how it goes after a couple more Tests on other surfaces.
I will, later, start a new Forum thread for this topic, and will copy relevant posts from here to that one. Then we can continue this topic over a longer time period as we try more tests.
